Norilsk Nickel carries out construction of ventilation shaft at Taimyr mine

Norilsk Nickel announces implementation of a large project aiming to restore mineral resource base of the Company’s Polar Division – construction of ventilation shaft No.7 (VS-7) at Taimyr mine.

Construction of the main secondary substation No.75 is completed. In August, it is planned to deliver power to the primary ventilation unit to continue execution of start-up and commissioning works and to the hoisting unit of VS-7.

Implementation of the project will enable the Company to maintain production capacity of Taimyr mine with regards to rich ore. Additional increase of the mine’s rich ore reserves will total 8 mil. tons.

The objectives of VS-7 are routing the outgoing air stream and lowering/lifting the goods and mined rock. Additionally, the shaft serves as an emergency exit. Construction of the shaft resolves issues concerning the working conditions at the mine’s lower horizons; commissioning of VS-7 will rid the mine of poorly ventilated areas.

One the technical solutions is startup of Howden ventilation unit. Diameter of its impeller exceeds 4 meters and its production capacity is set at 650 cubic meters per second; it is one of the biggest units in the world.

The following new objects are currently being constructed at the VS-7area: primary ventilation unit, hoisting machine and cargo gallery buildings. Additionally, the following objects are being refurbished and reconstructed: - tunneling Koper, skip hoisting unit building and administrative and residential premises. Assembly of double-reel hoisting machine, delivered in accordance with the contract, concluded with Mining Technology SIM AG, is already completed in the cage hoisting unit building. Currently, electric engineering works are being performed and it is planned to start execution of commissioning works in August.

It is planned to complete the entire scope of construction and assembly works at the VS-7 area by Q4 2012. The total amount of funds invested into the project is over RUB 5 bil.

Ventilation Shaft No.7 of Taimyr mine, upon completion, will be 1865 meters deep – the deepest in Eurasia.

ABOUT MMC NORILSK NICKEL

MMC Norilsk Nickel, a company incorporated under the laws of the Russian Federation, is the largest diversified mining and metals company in Russia, the world's largest producer of nickel and palladium and one of the world's largest producers of platinum, rhodium, copper and cobalt. In addition to this, MMC Norilsk Nickel produces a large number of other by-products, including gold, silver, tellurium, selenium, iridium and ruthenium.

The key production units of the Company’s group in Russia are at the Taimyr and Kola Peninsulas. MMC Norilsk Nickel international assets include operations in Finland, Australia, Botswana and South Africa.

MMC Norilsk Nickel’s shares are traded at MICEX-RTS. ADR’s on the Company’s shares are traded on the other the counter market in the US and at the London and Berlin stock exchanges.